Avernus Cathedral
Locations article |image=Defiance-Environment-Avernus.jpg |caption=Avernus Cathedral in Defiance. |introduced= Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (1996) |appearances= Blood Omen Defiance }} Avernus Cathedral, also known as The Great Cathedral of Avernus, was the focal point of the city of Avernus and the centre of worship for the religion of the inhabitants. Unknown to most, the catacombs beneath the cathedral were home to a different type of worship, that of Hash'ak'gik Cult. The Cathedral was a playable location in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and Legacy of Kain: Defiance. Profile BO1-Map0035-Sect07-AvernusCathedralTop-ExteriorB.png BO1-Map0035-Sect06-AvernusCathedralTop-ExteriorA.png BO1-Map0035-Sect06-Avernus.png BO1-Map0035-Sect17-AvernusCathedralBottom-ExteriorB.png BO1-Map0035-Sect16-AvernusCathedralBottom-ExteriorA.png Avernus Cathedral's main altar.jpg|Avernus Cathedral's main altar (Defiance) Avernus.jpg|...and after being accessed with the Dark Scripture Avernus Cathedral was first seen in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain in the chapter Defeat Azimuth when Kain went after Azimuth to cleanse the pillar of Dimension in the Blood Omen era. Originally advised by Ariel that he would have to "rise and fall and find his salvation in between" Kain travelled to Avernus to find the city in flames and being attacked by Demons, but none of the devastation outside touched the Cathedral itself, which was apparently the source. Kain entered the Cathedral to find that it was split into several realms which were navigated between by teleporters - Alongside the normal Cathedral interior was a murky alternate realm, a 'heavenly' realm which was decked with bright cloud imagery; and a 'hellish' realm which was dark and foreboding with a bloody, skeletal theme. Hidden inside the catacombs, Kain also found Hash'ak'gik's altar and his first clues as to who was responsible for the corruption of the Pillars. In the Heaven realm, Kain ascended through a series of cloudy rooms and stairways and ultimately found and claimed the legendary Soul Reaver Blade. Afterward he descended down through the underground chambers of the Hell realm, ultimately finding the Wraith Armor. Returning to the main area of the Cathedral, Kain was finally able to enter Azimuth's chambers to confront the Dimension Guardian. Both of the items he had recovered from the Cathedral would come in useful against Azimuth who - unaware of both devices presence in her Cathedral - summoned Demons from bloody runes to combat Kain. When she was within range, a single strike of the Soul Reaver was sufficient to Kill Azimuth. Defeating Azimuth, Kain claimed her Third Eye Pandant pillar token and along with it found a time streaming device she had stolen from Moebius in order to gather demons from other ages. Kain immediately understood what Azimuth had been intending to do with the device, but did not realize that she had used it already, or why it was his salvation. Kain would subsequently use the time-streaming device to escape the Battle of the Last Stand in Stranded in Time, while the Soul Reaver went on to become Kain's iconic weapon. The Cathedral returned in Defiance where Raziel travelled through the Blood Omen era and on the advice of Vorador arrived at the cathedral looking for the Heart of Darkness so that he could resurrect Janos Audron, apparently shortly after the visit of the younger Kain. Exploring the Cathedral Raziel found Ancient vampire ruins and was able to enter the Earth Forge and ultimately imbue the Wraith Blade with elemental Earth, forging the Earth Reaver. This allowed Raziel to summon Earth platforms so he could reach the higher balconies of the Cathedral where he could discover the Dark Scripture. Using the scripture on the altar opened a portal leading to the 'hellish' Avernus Catacombs, where he found evidence of Hylden involvement in the secret religion of Avernus and their side of the Elder Wars and 'dual champion' prophecy. Now virtually convinced he was the Hylden champion, Raziel ran into Mortanius who was conducting a ceremony worshipping the unseen Hash'ak'gik over a murky pit along with a group of Cenobites. Curious to see the entity, Raziel approached the edges and was telekinetically dragged into the pit with to find his monstrously devolved brother Turel - periodically possessed by several Hylden and used as the voice of 'Hash'ak'gik to command their disciples. Battling with possession by the Hylden, Turel vaguely explained the circumstances of his capture while various Hylden struggled to communicate with Raziel and warn him of the coming of the Vampire champion. Believing he needed blood to gather the strength to get rid of the Hylden influence - and not aware that Raziel was no longer a creature of flesh and blood - Turel attacked his brother but was defeated: finally gifting Raziel the Amplified Force Projectile or Enhanced telekinesis ability. Afterward Raziel got the chance to talk to Mortanius, intermittently possessed by the Hylden Lord, who told him that he had placed the Heart of Darkness inside Kain to turn him into a vampire in the first place, believing he was creating the vampire champion. The Elder Kain, however, had travelled through time, worried about what would happen if Raziel found the Heart and followed Raziel inside the Cathedral. As Raziel left, he found Kain entering the Cathedral. Supposedly fulfilling the prophecy of the champions final battle, Raziel attacked Kain and won, tearing the heart out of Kain, blasting him through a portal between realms and leaving him to die before returning to Vorador's Mansion to use the heart to attempt to bring Janos back to life. Kain would later wake in the Demon Realm, finding himself in Turel's pit assailed by demons. He was able to escape and return to the Material Realm and after battling his way out of the Cathedral, Kain returned to the Vampire Citadel, feeling the pull of the Spirit Forge. The book of the Dark Scripture.jpg|The Dark Scripture Ancient History and Backstory The history of the Cathedral is murky at best. The Cathedral contained both Ancient Vampire and Hylden ruins on the site, with the catacombs bearing murals depicting the Vampire-Hylden war from the pre-banishment Hylden point of view, perhaps suggesting that it was once the site of a Hylden stronghold, as well as bearing the warp room leading to the vampire-associated Earth forge. At some point in its more recent history The matriarch of the city and owner of the cathedral, Azimuth was used a time streaming device she had stolen from Moebius to bring Turel back from around 2000 years in the future. Turel - possessed intermittently by various other Hylden - was then used an impressive mouthpiece by the Hash'ak'gik cult to command their human followers, eventually seducing key members of the Circle itself and allowing the Hylden to possess Mortanius so that they could use him to murder Ariel and set the Corruption in motion. It is likely that Azimuth's actions were orchestrated and commanded by the Hylden. Design and Layout The Cathedral of Avernus is split into several dimensions due to Azimuth's sorcery and Kain is frequently required to pass between them as he progresses through the Cathedral. , Environment The Main Cathedral and the Alternate Realm BO1-Map0036-Sect00-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0036-Sect01-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-Cathedral.jpg The initial area of the Cathedral is effectively mirrored in the first 'alternate' dimension area, with the layout resembling a selection of small square and rectangular rooms joined by doors and Teleporters that led to different realms. Most of the details of the Cathedral were reduced to bare rooms with creme walls and with floors resembling cloudy skies in the heaven realm, while The Wall buttons were made of a material like stained glass and the Black fire mages of the Material Cathedral were replaced by Giant demons. The Heaven realm BO1-Map0037-Sect10-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png|Heaven BO1-Map0037-Sect22-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect20-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect21-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect23.png The Heaven realm was one of the apparent alternate realms of Avernus in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and the first of the themed dungeons of the cathedral. The realm contained much 'heavenly' imagery and featured a slow 'ascent' apparently through the clouds into the sky. Kain's progression through the realm led him to discover the legendary Soul Reaver blade within. The Hell realm BO1-Map0038-Sect43-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png|Hell BO1-Map0038-Sect44-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect53-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect52-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect32-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect42-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect71-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect41-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect63-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect62-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect51-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect72-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect54-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect61-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect64-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect72-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect65-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png The Hell realm was one of the apparent alternate realms of Avernus in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain and the second of the themed dungeons of the cathedral. The realm contained much gory 'hellish' imagery and featured a slow 'descent' down into the underground. Kain's progression through the realm led him to discover the Wraith Armor within. The underground nature and theming potentially linked the area to the Avernus Catacombs. Hash'ak'gik's altar File:BO1-Map0009-Sect00-HashakgikAltar.png|Hash'ak'gik's altar (BO1). File:BO1-Map0009-Sect01.png|The passage leading to Hash'ak'gik's altar (BO1). File:BO1-Render-Miscellaneous-HashAkGik-Windowed.png|A windowed depiction of the Hash'ak'gik tome (BO1). File:BO1-Render-Miscellaneous-HashAkGik.png|A fullscreen depiction of the Hash'ak'gik tome (BO1). Hash'ak'gik's altar was a secret area within Avernus Cathedral, visited by Kain during the Blood Omen era. It was a perverse, occult shrine to the god Hash'ak'gik, and contained battle artifacts and a tome recounting his commands to human worshippers. The altar could be visited in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. The Avernus Catacombs Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-EarthForge-Portal-Lower.jpg Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-EarthForge-Portal-Upper.jpg Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-Turel'sPit.jpg Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-CatacombsPortal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-1-Portal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-2-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-3-Clearing.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-4-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-1-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-2-Clearing.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-3-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-TurelDoor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Top-Back.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Top.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-FullHeight.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TopPlatform.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TopPlatform-Spectral.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TorchSymbols.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-MortaniusChamber.png Defiance-Avernus-Catacombs-MortaniusChamber.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-SidePassages.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Spectral-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Spectral-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-SideDoor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Portal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Tall.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-High.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Top.png The Avernus Catacombs were an underground area beneath the Cathedral that was seen in Legacy of Kain: Defiance and was briefly seen in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain with the Hell realm potentially being part. The Area featured many underground chambers populated by demons and their worshippers. At it's heart, Raziel found a pit housing the dark god 'Hash'ak'gik' being worshipped by a cult, and also found chambers used by Mortanius. Azimuth's chambers BO1-Map0005-Sect11-BossAzimuthPreamble.png BO1-Map0005-Sect02-BossAzimuth.png BO1-Map0005-Sect13-BossAzimuthPostamble.png Notes *In the catacombs in ''Blood Omen'', there is a candidate for Malek's corpse which resembles the one seen in the opening video far more than does the one Malek identifies in his bastion ; there is also also a dark altar dedicated to Hash'ak'gik, this altar contained a depiction of the Dark Entity (the Hylden Lord ) as he was seen at the end of Blood Omen - this led many fans to believe that Hash'ak'gik and the Dark Entity (the Hylden Lord) were the same. The situation was shown in ''Defiance'' to be much more complicated with Turel actually representing Hash'ak'gik for the religion followers (and the words of the 'bloodstained book ' can certainly be applied to Turel), though the entity behind the plan is still the Hylden Lord it now seems more likely that the cult was not named after him. The 'Dark scripture ' Raziel uses to summon the portal to the catacombs may well be related to the blood-stained book seen in Hash'ak'gik's altar room . *Avernus is one of the largest areas in Blood Omen and is listed under several different map designations in files. The main area of the city and its interiors are labelled under "Map 0035", the regular Cathedral interior is "Map 0036", the Heaven realm is "Map 0037" and the Hell realm is "Map 0038" and the secret altar of Hash'ak'gik is "Map 0009" - with the final areas of the Cathedral listed under the "Map 0005" designation used for bosses (specifically "Sect 11", "Sect 02" and "Sect 13"). In Defiance the cathedral areas are split into several distinct map areas, with "Avernus 99a" relating to the main area of the Cathedral, "Avernus 1a" referring to the main Cathedral as it appears in the Raziel/Kain boss battle, "Avernus 2a" relating to the Earth forge warp gate room. The areas from "Avernus 3a" to "Avernus 6a" all refer to the Avernus Catacombs, with "Avernus 3a" refers to initial corridors and trails surrounding the first clearing area, "Avernus 4a" refers to the corridors and trails surrounding the second clearing area, "Avernus 5a" refers to Turel's pit and Mortanius's chambers, and "Avernus 6a" refers to the Demon Realm alternate of Turel's pit. *In the Cathedral in Blood Omen, Kain was attacked by many Priests who wielded magic, it is likely these were the same people who were dressed in masks as Cenobites when worshipping Hash'ak'gik. Just before Azimuth 's battle the 'normal' Cathedral also contained a large stained glass ceiling which depicted the battle between Vorador and Malek.The 'heavenly' realm of the Cathedral has yet to be seen again in the series. BO1-Map0035-Sect06-AvernusCathedralTop-ExteriorA.png|The top of Avernus Cathedral in game (BO1) BO1-Map0035-Sect17-AvernusCathedralBottom-ExteriorB.png|the of the Cathedral (BO1) BO1-Cutscene-BatFlight-AvernusCathedral-021.png|The Cathedral in bat flight Defiance-Environment-Avernus.jpg|''Defiance'' concept art of the Cathedral Defiance-Texture-Citadel-RazAvernusVision.png|The Cathedral as seen in the Oracle's pool Defiance-Mansion-AvernusVista.png|The Cathedral seen from Vorador's Mansion Defiance-Texture-Mansion-AvernusVista-Close.png|The Cathedral seen from Vorador's Mansion *The external appearance of Avernus Cathedral is not presented consistently and even varies within the same title. *Like a lot of Blood Omen, Avernus ' geography does not exactly match that shown on maps. This is especially noticeable in Avernus' case as the outside of the Cathedral can barely fit into the space given for the entire city, let alone considering the internal layout. This could be considered canon however, given that Azimuth the Planar, Matriarch of Avernus, was guardian of dimension and could presumably have manipulated this effect with her powers. *It seems curious that Ancient Vampire and Hylden relics would be seen so close to each other. It has been theorised that Avernus and It's Cathedral may have been built on top of one or both, though for what purpose remains unclear. Gallery BO1-Map0036-Sect00-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0036-Sect01-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0036-Sect11-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0036-Sect10-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0036-Sect02-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0005-Sect11-BossAzimuthPreamble.png BO1-Map0005-Sect02-BossAzimuth.png BO1-Map0005-Sect13-BossAzimuthPostamble.png BO1-Map0036-Sect03-AvernusCathedral-Interior.png BO1-Map0037-Sect10-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png|Heaven BO1-Map0037-Sect22-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect20-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect21-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Heaven.png BO1-Map0037-Sect23.png BO1-Map0038-Sect43-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png|Hell BO1-Map0038-Sect44-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect53-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect52-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect32-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect42-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect71-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect41-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect63-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect62-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect51-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect72-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect54-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect61-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect64-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect72-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png BO1-Map0038-Sect65-AvernusCathedral-Interior-Hell.png Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-Cathedral.jpg Defiance-Avernus-EarthPlatforms.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-SpareBalcony.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-ScripturePlaced.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-ScriptureBalcony.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-MainFloor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-MainDoorHigh.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-MainCathedral.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-LovecraftCircle.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-EarthWarpBackDoor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-CathedralAltarHigh.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-BareAltar.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-AltarActivated.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus99a-Altar.png Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-EarthForge-Portal-Lower.jpg Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-EarthForge-Portal-Upper.jpg Defiance-Avernus-Avernus2a-EarthWarpRoom.png Defiance-Prima-Map-Cathedral-Turel'sPit.jpg Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-CatacombsPortal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-1-Portal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-2-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-3-Clearing.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus3a-4-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-1-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-2-Clearing.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-3-Turn.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus4a-TurelDoor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Top-Back.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Top.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-FullHeight.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TopPlatform.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TopPlatform-Spectral.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-TorchSymbols.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-MortaniusChamber.png Defiance-Avernus-Catacombs-MortaniusChamber.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-SidePassages.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Spectral-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-Spectral-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus5a-TurelPit-SideDoor.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Left.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Right.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Portal.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Tall.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-High.png Defiance-Avernus-Avernus6a-TurelPit-DemonRealm-Top.png File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-01.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-02.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-03.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-04.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-05.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-06.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). File:Defiance-BonusMaterial-EnvironmentArt-AvernusCathedral-07.png|Bonus material art of Avernus Cathedral (Defiance). Appearances * Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain * Legacy of Kain: Defiance See also * Avernus Cathedral and Catacombs at Dark Chronicle (by Marie Walter). 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